Advancing Knowledge About Michigan's Most Vulnerable Caregivers: Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

Year Awarded: 2006
Project Leaders:
Gary Anderson, Social Work; Ama Agyemang, Social Work, Kinship Care Resource Center; Joseph Kozakiewicz, Chance at Childhood Law and Social Work Clinic

Project Description:
The MSU Kinship Care Resource Center School of Social Work will be conducting the "Advancing Knowledge about Michigan's Most Vulnerable Caregivers: Grandparents Raising Grandchildren" research project. This project will seek to survey kinship caregivers statewide in Michigan to gather data on four topics:

1. Social support - knowledge of and connection with other kinship families; the level of emotional and tangible support received from family members and others.
2. Community resources - utilization of local programs and services.
3. Financial resources - sources and adequacy of household income and insurance.
4. Outcomes for children raised in kinship care, especially those who are at least 16 years old-educational achievement, extracurricular activities, and behavior for all ages; work, living, and educational arrangements for those 16 and older.

All four topics will be incorporated into one survey which will include a demographic section with questions related to age, gender, and marital status of the caregiver(s), county of residence, type of kinship care arrangement, household income, number of children in kinship care, etc. This survey is intended to be succinct and to provide enough information from which to make a determination of areas that need further exploration and that would be appropriate for larger grant proposals for statewide kinship programs and services.